Record controlled alphabetic printing machine



Dec. 4, 195] R. H. SAMPSON 2,577,092

RECORD CONTROLLED ALPHABETIC PRINTING MACHINE Filed Dec. 20, 1947 2 SHEETSSHEET l i R l 1 j I K I E 5 9 I e O X 2 5a 23/ l6- 1- 9 I I ATTORNEY RICHARD H. SAMPSON Dec. 4, 1951 R. H. SAMPSON 2,577,092

RECORD CONTROLLED ALPHABETIC PRINTING MACHINE Filed D60. 20; 1947 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 INVENTOR RICHARD H. SAMPSON BY f Patented Dec. 4, 1951 RECORD CONTROLLED ALPHABETIC PRINTING MACHINE Richard H. Sampson, Plainfleld, N. J., assignor to International Business Machines Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application December 20, 1947, Serial No. 792,962

Claims. (Cl. 101-93) This invention relates to printing mechanism and more particularly to printing mechanism of the record card controlled type.

The principal object of the invention is to provide an improved and simplified mechanism for controlling the positioning of a type carrier for the selection of alphabetic and numeric type elements in response to the sensing of combinational perforations in a column of a record card.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a type carrier with selective mechanism to either elevate the carrier to raise one set of type elements past a platen or to lower the carrier to cause a second set to pass the platen in the opposite direction. Provision is made to effect an initial displacement of the type on the carrier, so that the direction of movement of the carrier selects one set of type and the displacement effects a further selection of type within the sets.

Other objects of the invention will be pointed out in the following description and claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which disclose, by way of example, the principle of the invention and the best mode, which has been contemplated, of applying that principle.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view of the printing mechanism showing the essential operating elements thereof. I

Fig. 2 is a view of parts in Fig. 1 in an operated position.

In the drawings, It represents a carrier mounted for reciprocation and provided with an upper set of stopping teeth II and a lower set of stopping teeth [2 which move past the stop pawls l3 and 14, respectively, accordingly as the carrier is lowered or raised. The pawls I3, M are articulated at [5 and normally latched in the position shown by engagement of an arm of pawl I 4 with armature latch it of a magnet 11. In the home position of the parts as in Fig. 1, a restoring tooth [2a, which is higher than teeth I2; engages pawl l4 to rock and hold the pawls in their latched positions.

Type head [8 is provided with a stem l9 slidably mounted on the carrier l0 and biased downwardly by a spring 28 against a horizontally slidable stop 2| which is suitably mounted on the carrier. Head I 8 is provided with an-upper set of type elements 22 and a-lower set of type elements 23, normally located above and below the center line, respectively, of platen 24 for the purpose ofraising one set of type elements past the platen or to lower the carrier to cause a second set to pass the platen in the opposite direction, thereby increasing the speed of operation of the printing mechanism. The spacingof the type elements is half that of the teeth ll, I2, so that, when pawl l3 engages the 9, 8, 1, 6, etc. teeth II, the second, fourth, sixth, etc. elements 22 from the bottom will be presented at the printing line opposite platen 24. Likewise, when the pawl l4 engages the 9. 8, 1, 6, etc. teeth i2, the first, third, fifth, etc. elements 23 from the top will be presented at the printing line. Stop 2| has a rise 25 which, when shifted to the right to the position of Fig. 2, will raise the head IS the distance between adjacent elements 22 to thereby select the alternate elements. Thus, if the carrier is raised with head I8 in its lower position, pawl l4 will select a type element 23 of the group comprising the topmost and alternate elements. If the carrier is raised with head l8 in its upper position, pawl l4 will select a type element 23 of the group comprising the remaining elements 23.

In the similar manner, if the carrier is lowered. I

with head I8 in its lower position, pawl I3 will select a type element 22 of the group comprising the second lowest and alternate elements and, if the carrier is raised with head I8 in its upper position, pawl l3 will select a type element 22 of the group comprising the remaining elements 22.

The manner in which the carrier is recipro cated will now be explained. 38 represents a main or cyclic shaft of the apparatus which makes one revolution for each operation and is driven from any suitable source of power. A gear 31 thereon drives gear 32 on a shaft 33 at a 2 to 1 ratio, so that shaft 33 makes a half revolution for each operation. This shaft has a box cam 34 secured thereto in whose cam groove rollers 35 and 36 ride. These rollers are at the ends of cross bars 31 and 38, respectively, guided for vertical movement so that in a half revolution of cam 34 bar 31 moves up and down again while bar 38 moves down and up again.

Abutting bar 31 and also guided for vertical movement is an actuator 39 urged upwardly through a spring 40 acting on a lever 4| pivoted at 42 and articulated with the actuator 39 at 43. In a similar manner, actuator 44 is urged downwardly against bar 38 through a spring 45 acting on a lever 46. Thus, as the bars reciprocate, the actuators follow under the influence of their springs.

The lower extremity of carrier in supports a pair of spring-urged, horizontally slidable interposers 41 and 48 whose right hand ends are hookshaped for cooperative engagement with actu ators 99 and. 44, respectively, when the interposers are shifted to the right. Such shifting is effected by a control slide 49 which has a cam surface 50 engageable with intermediate slides 5| 52, so that as the slide is elevated. cam 50 will first shift slide 52 and interposer 49 and then release these and shift slide 5| and interposer 41 and then release the same. This control slide is differentially positionable to stop in one of four positions under control of a record card in the following manner.

Shaft 30 through a box cam 53 and cooperating roller 54 reciprocates a cross bar 55 to allow spring 58 to elevate control slide 49, whereupon teeth 51 designated 0, X, R will pass stopping pawl 58.

The shaft 30, through gearing (not illustrated) drives feed rollers represented at 59, which advance a well known form of perforated record card past sensing brushes 50 and BI, which are spaced apart so that the index point positions in a column of card 62 are traversed in the order 0, X, R by brush 6| and then 9, 8, 1, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, l, by brush 60. While the 0, X, R positions of the card column pass brush 6|, the carrier ||l remains in its home position of Fig. 1 and the control slide 49 rises to present the O, X and R teeth to pawl 58 as the corresponding card positions are at brush Bl. If a hole is encountered in one of these positions, magnet 64 is energized through a circuit from side of line 55, through cam controlled contacts C5 (closed only during the sensing of the O, X, R positions). contact roller 66, hole in the card, brush BI and magnet 64 to ground. If the hole were in the X position, slide 49 would have been stopped in the position shown in Fig. 2, where cam 50 shifts slide 52 and interposer 48 to the right, so that the hooked end of the lower interposer 48 reaches under a knob on actuator 44.

If the slide had stopped at its 0 position. the cam 50 would have effected the same shifting of actuator 52. With slide 49 stopped in its R position, cam 50 shifts and holds interposer 41 to the right in coupling engagement with actuator 39. If no 0, X or R hole is present, the slide 50 rises to its extreme position, one step beyond the R stopping position wherein cam 50 also shifts and holds interposer 41. In brief, therefore, an O or X hole in the card will couple the carrier ID for downward operation and an R hole or absence of any 0, X or R hole will couple the carrier for upward operation.

Slide 49 has integral therewith a second cam 68 which through an intermediate slide 51 shifts slide 2| to the right. With slide 49 in its X position (as in Fig. 2) or in its R position, slide 2| is shifted to adjust the type head upwardly with respect to the carrier [0. With the slide 49 in its 0 or blank positions, the cam 58 is below or above the intermediate slide 61, respectively, so that slide 2| is in its position of Fig. 1 after the O, X and R positions of the card have been sensed.

The four conditions may be tabulated as follows:

0 hole in card-Type head normal-Carrier coupled to 44 X hole in card--Type head shiftedCarrier coupled to 44 R hole in card-Type head shifted-Carrier coupled to 39 No hole in card-Type head normal-Carrier coupled to 39 As the II hole is now sensed by brush 80, the bars I! and 38 begin to rise and lower, respectively', with the hooked ends of interposers 41, 45 engaging the knobs on the actuators, so that they will remain held in shifted position as they move away from the intermediate slides 5|, 52. An

impulse to magnet I! will thereafter be directed ,pawls l3, M will interrupt the carrier in the selected position in its upward or downward movement and with type head I8 in normal or shifted position.

Cam 53 returns slide 49 while the carrier is advancing to print selecting position, so that the intermediate slides 5|, 52 and 91 are freed for restoration.

When a carrier is interrupted by pawl l3 or 4, its actuator 39 or 44 is also stopped but the bars 31, 38 continue to the full extent of their excursion and shortly thereafter, as is usual, type hammers (not shown) take an impression from the positioned type element on to a record sheet on platen 24.

During the return of the carrier, either up or down, slide 2| engages a spring actuated element 10 which shifts the slide to the left and with it the intermediate slide 61. As bars 31, 38

restore, they will pick up the displaced actuators 39, 44 and these in turn will engage an extension 12 on the carrier to thereby positively restore the same. This action releases interposers 4'1, 48 which under tension of their springs will return to normal position and, as they reach home position, will engage and return the intermediate slides 5|, 52. Thus, at the end of a cycle of operation the parts are returned to the position of Fig. 1 in readiness for a further cycle of operations, during which another record card 52 passes brushes 6|, 60.

While there have been shown and described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a single modification, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art without de arting from the spirit of the invention. It is the intent on, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

- 1. In a printing mechanism in combination, a carri r mounted for reciprocation, a first actuator for elevating the carrier, a second actuator for depressing the carrier, an interposer for connecting the carrier to the first actuator, another interposer for connecting the carrier to the sec ond actuator, a, type head mounted on the carrier having a normal position thereon and shiftable to an alternate position, a device for shifting the type head on the carrier, means for sensing a record card and means controlled thereby for selectively operatin said interposers, to cause the carrier to be connected to either said first or second actuator, and for selectively operating said shifting device, in accormdance with the location of the perforation sensed, whereby the carrier will be elevated or depressed depending upon which interposer is operated and said movement will be with the head in either normal or 8 alternate position, depending upon whether or not the shifting device is operated.

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 in which the means controlled by the sensing means comprises a cam element mounted for reciprocation and control means therefor to cause said cam element to take any of a series of positions, said element being configured so as to selectively actuate the interposers and shifting device in a different relative manner for each of said series of positions.

3. The invention set forth in claim 1 in which a second sensing means is provided to sense digit representing perforations in the card, means for moving the actuators to shift the carrier in the selected direction, and means controlled by said second sensing means to selectively interrupt the movement of the carrier at selected points in its travel in accordance with the value of the digit perforation sensed.

4. In a printing mechanism in combination, a carrier mounted for reciprocation, a first'actuator for elevating the carrier, a second actuator for depressing the carrier, an interposer for connecting the carrier to the first actuator, another interposer for connecting the carrier to the sec- 0nd actuator, a type head mounted on the carrier having a normal position thereon and shiftable to an alternate position, a device for shifting the type head on the carrier, and means for'selec' tively operating said interposers, to cause the the interposers and shifting device each comprises a slide mounted on the carrier for movement transversely to the direction of travel of the carrier and in which operation of the same is effected by movement in said transverse direction.

RICHARD H. SAMPSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,882,766 Bryce Oct. 18, 1932 2,056,391 Daly Oct. 6, 1936 2,076,713 Ford Apr. 13, 1937 2,165,260 Herman July 11, 1939 2,181,996 Knutson Dec. 5, 1939 2,399,724 Dilling May 7, 1946 2,413,883 'Mills Jan. 7, 1947 

